Pharmacy Innovation Project Manager (Specialty Pharmacy)

Excellus BCBS•Rochester, NY

About The Position

This position delivers multiple concurrent, sometimes accelerated, Pharmacy Innovation projects and programs with quality, on schedule, within budget, and in support of department strategy. It also conducts operational process analysis, identifies process improvements, refines programs, makes recommendations, and executes action plans. In partnership with internal and external stakeholders, the project manager is responsible for projects from initiation through post-implementation monitoring and maintenance, including ideation, solutioning, resourcing, delivery, monitoring, and stakeholder communication. The role plans, coordinates, and monitors project work and improvement initiatives across Pharmacy Innovation and its cross-divisional interfaces. Depending on the classification level, the role may manage project economics and multiple cross-functional teams, mentor staff, improve project methodologies, and represent leadership in decision-making and senior-level work. The position may also support operational-stage initiatives assigned by leadership.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business Administration, or a relevant field.
At least five years of demonstrated performance in healthcare administration, operational management, or a related area.
At least three years of project-management experience.
Demonstrated leadership skills.
Demonstrated ability to develop and achieve project scope and costs, plan work, and meet project deliverables.
Demonstrated ability to form and foster high-performing cross-functional teams.
Highly effective communication skills.
Demonstrated knowledge of quality principles, especially root cause analysis and problem solving.
Very strong analytical and business-process development skills.
Strong organizational and multitasking skills.
In-depth knowledge of application delivery, management structures, and reporting procedures.
For Level II: five years of project-management experience; three years managing cross-functional teams; experience drafting internal and external communications about project findings and status; experience with multiple project methodologies, such as waterfall, agile, and SDLC; experience coaching and mentoring in process improvement and project management; and ability to apply process improvements in matrixed environments.
For Level III: eight years of project-management experience, or five to six years plus PMP/PMI or comparable certification; five years managing cross-functional teams; demonstrated communication with senior management through discussions, reports, meetings, and executive presentations; experience training individuals and teams in process improvement and project management; and ability to apply process improvement to large systems and matrixed environments.
Ability to travel across health plan service regions as needed.

Responsibilities

Plan, direct, and coordinate matrixed teams through Pharmacy Innovation project and program cycles, from ideation and assessment through delivery and refinement.
Plan, schedule, monitor, and report on project and process-improvement activities, including cross-divisional initiatives involving Pharmacy Innovation, LBS, PHE, customer service, and IT.
Create and execute project work plans; estimate and plan team work using appropriate tools and required standards.
Work with project teams to determine customer requirements and translate them into operational plans, including technical requirements where appropriate.
Represent Pharmacy Innovation in project approval meetings and help prioritize projects, including explaining the criticality of work.
Track the Pharmacy Innovation and Pharmacy Services initiative pipeline and market developments; support internal, market, and competitive research.
Independently assess and monitor projects, identify problems, develop and implement solutions, evaluate outcomes, troubleshoot, and escalate issues when needed.
Educate and train stakeholders on project processes and tools, and communicate project information to users, colleagues, management, and external parties.
Lead as a company-wide project contact and answer questions about projects and related education.
Create and deploy portfolio monitoring reports for Pharmacy Innovation projects outside the EPMO’s Strategic Project Monitoring.
Enhance communication channels within Pharmacy Innovation and across divisions about priorities, project work, and project-management impacts.
Meet with management, sponsors, and project teams to review scope and progress and resolve issues; establish metrics for key project criteria.
Develop, propose, and negotiate project proposals, quotations, and add-ons with leadership and customers.
Support transitions from implementation to operations when assigned, and maintain currency in project-management techniques and emerging technologies.
Collaborate on long-term plans and foster continuous improvement, efficiency, productivity, waste reduction, cost reduction, and program value.
Monitor and report resolution of high-impact problems, including exceptions and scope-change requests.
Adhere to company mission, values, Code of Conduct, privacy policies, and attendance expectations; perform other assigned duties.
At Level II, represent supported areas in project-related decisions and committees; matrix-manage cross-functional teams; manage project economics, budgets, staffing, resources, and risks; assemble resources; develop contingency plans; control scope and change management; coach teams; manage multiple project teams; and mentor staff in project-management methods and processes.
At Level III, act as a change leader; represent supported-area leadership in cross-divisional and regional leadership activities; potentially represent Pharmacy Innovation externally; and work with senior management to assess C-suite work, identify risks and political exposure, and develop mitigation plans.